War in Ukraine: Russia has conquered almost 4,000 km2 of Ukrainian soil in 2024, seven times more than in 2023

Since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, the year 2024 has seen a clear increase in Russian advances on Ukrainian territory. An advance seven times greater than in 2023.

Russian forces advanced 3,985 km2 in Ukraine in 2024, almost seven times more than in 2023 (584 km2), according to AFP analysis of data provided by the American Institute for the Study of War (ISW), stopped on Monday, December 30.

November and October, a clear Russian acceleration

This advance was notably fueled by the acceleration of Russian movements in the fall of 2024, their troops having advanced 610 km2 in October and 725 km2 in November. November and October 2024 are thus the two months in which they have conquered the most territory in Ukraine since March 2022 and the first weeks of the conflict.

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In December, the Russian advance slowed, reaching 465 km2 in the first 30 days of the month. But it is already nearly four times as much as in the same month last year, and two and a half times as much as in December 2022.

A concentration of conquered territories in Donetsk Oblast

Nearly three-quarters of the territory captured by the Russians in Ukraine in 2024 is located in Donetsk Oblast, where the city of Pokrovsk, a key logistical hub for the Ukrainian army, is located. Russia now controls or operates in 70% of the region, up from 59% at the end of 2023.

Russian advances accelerated there in August 2024, with nearly 400 km2 captured in the month, reaching 629 km2 in November.

The year 2024 was also marked by the large-scale Ukrainian offensive in the Russian oblast of Kursk, which began in July. On August 20-21, Ukrainian claimed advances peaked, extending over some 1,320 square kilometers. But this area of ​​operations has since shrunk to 482 square kilometers as of December 30.